I had heard of this amazing collection of short stories by Ted Chiang and immediately tried to get it from the library. Apparently everybody else had too because I was wait-listed. Okay, fine, I've got plenty of other books. Off I read and waited and read and waited. Then I heard there was going to be a film adaptation of one of the stories in the book. Ohh!! Okay, library!!! I want to read it before I see the film! Oh, the film's out and I keep hearing good things. Okay, I'll watch the film because 1) the book is almost always better than the film/TV show (notable exception the Sookie Stackhouse books are nowhere near as good as the True Blood series....) and 2) it's a collection of short stories and the film is only about one of the stories.... Okay, so great film, but when am I going to get the book??? Ah, 2017! So this is my first book of the year! And it's hard sci-fi! Love it!! Bring it on!!! :)
2. The Dark Forest by CiXin Liu
This is the second in the Remembrances of Earth's Past trilogy. This book spans more than 200 years and grapples with interesting issues of how humanity would react to an extraterrestrial threat. I'm not sure I agree with all of the various ideas put forth (and really don't like the scene where they point the Hubble II space telescope at the Earth and take a clear picture of people standing on a building), but it is a very interesting epic. Plus it's always fascinating reading another culture's view on big topics!
3. The Reader by Traci Chee
This young adult book is an adventure story set in a world where reading is magic... literally magic! It was a wonderful story and I'm really looking forward to the next book in the series!
4. By Gaslight by Steven Price
This Canadian-written tome is about a couple of Americans in England during the 1880s (with some bits in other places and times, like South Africa in the 1870s). I found that a very weird choice but okay... It is deeply, deeply, shockingly long. I don't think I have a short attention span, but it's a long book that doesn't feel like it needs to be that long. It took me a good 100 pages to feel actually engaged in the story.
5. Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly
This book was something I was really intrigued by despite the fact it is nonfiction- or rather because it is nonfiction! Women in science and NASA in the 40s!! Yay!! So exciting!! I'm so happy that Margot Lee Shetterly got this story out into the world and that the movie (#1 at the box office) propels it even further!! Now, I had to wait for more than two months to get this book from the library, but I'm so glad I got to read it!!
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